Samhain

Samhain (Irish: Samhain, Scottish Gaelic: Samhuinn, Manx: Sauin, Kymric: Calan Gaeaf, Gaulish: Samonios), is the festival that marks the Celtic New Year, it marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the year again. Samhain starts the winter, one of the two seasons of the Celts. The start of another season, the summer is celebrated in the festival of Beltane. 

It is the time of year when the veils between this world and the Otherworld were believed to be at their thinnest: when the spirits of the dead could most readily mingle with the living once again. The Samhain is the time when it is believed that the souls of the dead returned to their homes to visit relatives, to seek food and warmth into the fire. At Samhain, time lost all meaning and the past, present, and future were one. The dead, and the denizens of the Other World, walked among the living. It was, and still is for today pagans, a time of fairies, ghosts, demons, and witches. Winter itself was the Season of Ghosts, and Samhain is the night of their release from the Underworld. Many people lit bonfires to keep the evil spirits at bay. Often a torch was lit and carried around the boundaries of the home and farm, to protect the property and residents against the spirits throughout the winter. 

Death also symbolises endings and Samhain is therefore not only a time for reflecting on mortality, but also on the passing of relationships, jobs and other significant changes in life. A time for taking stock of the past and coming to terms with it, in order to move on and look forward to the future.

Later, when the festival was adopted by Christians, they celebrated it as All Hallows' Eve, followed by All Saints Day, though it still retained elements of remembering and honouring the dead. Not only did the Celts believe the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead dissolved on this night, they thought that the presence of the spirits helped their priests to make predictions about the future.

During the celebration the Celts wore costumes - usually animal heads and skins. They would also try and tell each other's fortunes. To celebrate Samhain the Druids built huge sacred bonfires. People brought harvest food and sacrificed animals to share a communal dinner in celebration of the festival. After the festival they re-lit the fires in their homes from the sacred bonfire to help protect them, as well as keep them warm during the winter months.

Many Irish and Scottish Celts appeased their dead with a traditional Dumb Supper. On Samhain Eve, supper was served in absolute silence, and one place was set at the head of the table "for the ancestors". This place was served food and drink without looking directly at the seat, for to see the dead would bring misfortune. Afterwards, the untouched plate and cup were taken outside "for the pookas", and left in the woods. In other traditions, this is the night to remember, honor, and toast our beloved departed, for the veil between the living and the dead is thin, and communication is possible on Samhain Eve.

Animals and food supplies needed special protection during this time, too. Samhain marked the time cattle, on which the Scottish Highland economy depended, were brought in from their summer grazing to their winter fold. The Gods were petitioned to protect the cattle during the long, hard winter. By now, the winter store of food had been harvested and stored. 

Some authors think that there is no evidence linking the Samahin with the cult of the dead and that this belief was popularized in the nineteenth century. According to the account of ancient sagas Samhain was the time when the Sídhe would have liked the other world. The faith-row, fog magician who made ​​people invisible, dispersed in Samhain and the elves could be seen by humans. The boundary between the Otherworld and the real world disappeared. One of the dates of the lunar calendar Celtic Coligny may be associated with Samhain. On the 17th day of the lunar month Samon, the reference * trinox Samoni Sindhis is interpreted as the date of the celebration of Samhain or summer solstice among the Gauls

To most modern Pagans, while death is still the central theme of the festival this does not mean it is a morbid event. For Pagans, death is not a thing to be feared. Old age is valued for its wisdom and dying is accepted as a part of life as necessary and welcome as birth. While Pagans, like people of other faiths, always honour and show respect for their dead, this is particularly marked at Samhain. Loved ones who have recently died are remembered and their spirits often invited to join the living in the celebratory feast. It is also a time at which those born during the past year are formally welcomed into the community. As well as feasting, Pagans often celebrate Samahin with traditional games such as apple-dooking.

After the cycle of the seasons ends at Autumn Equinox, it back to Samhain and the cycle start over again.